Jeb Dunnuck, real Rhône wine passionate, has rated our Châteauneuf-du-Pâpe 2010 with an “outstanding” in the recent Rhône Report of his eponymous blog. We have already noticed the crunchy fruit and the delicate tannins of this Grenache based wine during last year’s vintage. Grown on sandy soils of the area called Sainte Vierges in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, we replaced some missing vines of this 40-year-old Grenache by Mourvèdre and Counoise. Still ripening in large oak vats, the wine should be ready for bottling by next spring. But let’s rather listen to the nose and the palate of Jeb Dunnuck:

“A brilliant barrel sample and a blend of 100% Grenache that’s aged all in foudre for 18 months, the 2010 Domaine Santa Duc Châteauneuf­du­Pape is fantastic on the nose, showing a traditional, yet pure, fresh profile of raspberry, black currant, garrigue, flowers, and striking minerality. Just as good on the palate, with a medium to full-bodied, concentrated feel, serious structure, loads of ripe fruit, and a lengthy finish, this locked and loaded Châteauneuf­du­Pape has the fruit to be approachable young, but the stuffing and bones to age effortlessly for 15+ years. Fantastic stuff.”

Just by looking at them we go into raptures : Magnum, Jeroboam, Methusalem… Big is beautiful ! And what’s more, the wines do not age and ripen in the same way in those bottles – still one of the greatest mysteries of the wine world. Mostly, they only take the most precious nectars, excellent vintages, famous origins, and we like to hide them for years in our cellars, before presenting them on special occasions

The ennobled colour of the wine, the birth of its complex bouquet and the tannins that have got soft and silky with time and patience. The first impression of the wine that reflects in the smell of the cork, the first glass you poor, the slowly revealing perfumes, the first sip rolling around your tongue, while you just HAVE to close your eyes…

Pleasure, celebration, souvenirs, a journey of taste, the expression of a vintage… we all have our special reasons to open a special bottle !

You need time, space, patience, a good cellar - at the Domaine Santa Duc we know how difficult the work of “bottle-ripening” is. That’s why we have put aside in our cellars some precious bottles over the last years – especially for you ! Vacqueyras both from the Mediterranean 06-vintage and the elegant 08-vintage, some 07 and 08 bottles of the secret terroir of Roaix, only known by insiders, Prestige des Hautes Garrigues in Magnum bottles, Gigondas in Jeroboams…

Time, passion and pleasure in bottles – available for our friends and partners at the winery on request. 

Domaine Santa Duc Gigondas

2009 is a real Grenache year : Summer, sunshine and heat (but no drought !) – under those circumstances this noble grape variety develops ripe fruit, stunning acidity and seductive power in the southern Rhone valley. 

Let’s take the example of our Santa Duc “Les Blovac” from Rasteau, a prestigious terroir that was raised to the status of a Rhone Cru in 2010.

Mediterranean flavours instantly emanate from the uncorked bottle : Rosemary, laurel, green pepper, sour cherries, raspberries and fresh blackberry marmalade… it’s all in the glass ! Full-bodied and sensual, with some crispy tannins giving character and length.

Drink now or keep it in your cellar for another 8 or 10 yeras. 

“Following the tradition of the 9er-vintage, 2009 shows a lot of ambition…” wrote Bernard Burtschy in the French Figaro in April 2010. And many of you might have experienced the tasteful, harmonious and balanced wines of this vintage.

A rich and aromatic bouquet, a basket full of ripe, ambrosial fruit, with some chocolate and liquorices showing on the palate. A creamy mouth, supported by a solid backbone of lively acidity and crispy tannins on the final.

A full summer of the Provence in a bottle, released to be tasted and enjoyed immediately.

Revue du Vin de France Juni 2008
(Extract)

The character of the Rhone 2007 vintage:
Rich in tannins, but elegant and silky. Due to low acidity and high pH values, the wines feel quite sweet on the palate. Maturity and minerality bring them into good balance. […]

Santa Duc Gigondas
Sweet, mouth-filling and elegant, this wine is build on powerful, ripe and smooth tannins. Reliable foundations for long storage and ageing.

Domaine Santa Duc Vacqueyras
This fresh and somehow still a little bumpy wine, distinguishes itself by a rich, fruity and savoury structure. Its footprint and power show quite a bit of grit, but it needs a little time to bring up all its complexity.

Last year in June we have celebrated the second year of existence of a Santa Duc store in Nanjing, China. When it opened in 2008, we had the opportunity to visit the country, the town and the wine shop in 2009, and present our wines to journalists and wine enthusiasts in Nanjing.

Our impressions and souvenirs? A very warm welcome for our wines and our selves, and sincere interest in wine, as well as in French and European wine culture, the health aspects of wine, and its opulent universe of taste and flavours.

Meanwhile, we slowly succumbed to the flavours of the REAL Chinese cuisine we discovered in the “Central Kingdom” – delicious and savoury dishes perfectly harmonizing with our Rhone-wines.

Here you have an excellent example for the fine wines that could reveal the vintage 2008 in the Rhone Valley.

The wine is dark coloured with purple sparks. A little shy, the first nose offers aromas of blackcurrant, laurel and black pepper – a lot of pepper. After short breathing, the bouquet opens on wild strawberries, freshly cut herbs and a hint of eucalyptus.

The wine is soft and smooth on the palate, with few but serious tannins. A straight and fresh acidity adds some firmness and gives a lot of length to the final.

According to Robert Parker, this wine offers beautiful notes of kirsch liqueur, liquorice, spice box, roasted Provencal herbs, and a hint of lavender in its explosive aromatics. The wine possesses terrific purity and density as well as the succulence, fleshiness, charm, and sensuality of a beautiful dry red wine from Provence. Consume it over the next 3-4 years. (…) This vineyard, located near the old Roman village of Vaison-La-Romaine, may have produced as good a vintage in 2008 as it did in 2007." (06/09)

“Some of my best Syrah grapes ripen in Vaison la Romaine”, says Yves Gras. In the Clos Chante Duc, some 350 meters above sea level, he works the vineyards of Walter and Patricia Wells, a famous restaurant critic and food journalist who inter alia writes for the Washington Post and the NY Times, since 2007.

Some old Grenache, a little Mourvèdre and about a third of Syrah are the foundations of this fine and elegant Côtes du Rhône. After fermenting in modern concrete tanks, the wine ages in oak for 12 to 18 months.

Harvest at the Domaine de l’Arjolle and at Château de Margon generally starts at the end of August on our Chardonnay and Sauvignon grapes, to end about eight weeks later by picking the fruits for our late harvest wine “Lyre”. During this time build in our wineries the flavours of different wines.

Throughout the years, we have adapted our wine making process to the potential of each of our vineyards, as well as to the type of wines we were looking for. Our aim is to give a real character to all of our wines and to let each vintage have its word.

During harvest, every step results from a real collaboration between the vineyard team (Charles, Guilhem and Roland) and the winery team (François, Roch and Louis-Marie). It’s a period of synergy and trust for us, when the wine grower leaves the fruits of his work to the skills of the wine maker.

In the following you will find a short descriptions of a selection of our wines

Delphine de Margon - Chardonnay

Fresh and fruity, a typical Chardonnay nose. A soft and round mouth, with a crispy acidity and aromas of ripe peaches and apples. This wine goes down well, finishing on pastry and smoky flavours.

Équinoxe

A white wine, made from Sauvignon blanc, Viognier and Muscat grapes. Its bouquet shows complexity, power and elegance - fruits, flowers and minerals, underlined by hints of oak. The mouth is vivid and fresh and shows richness and depth. Flavour goes for spices like vanilla and cinnamon, finishing on citric fruits.

La Méridienne

A quite exceeding rosé wine, made from Syrah, Cabernet franc and Grenache grapes and aged for six months in American and French oak barrels. Very attractive, ripe nose, with red fruit and vanilla creamy oak. The palate displays a crisp acidity with freshness and vibrant berry fruit character... Smooth, fresh and perfectly balanced.

Delphine de Margon Syrah-Cabernet

A Cabernet-Syrah blend full of pure summer fruit flavours. Silky tannins, citric acidity, crushed blackcurrants – a pleasing palate with good length.

Le Z de l’Arjolle

The only Zinfandel made in France! Generous aromas of red berry, blackberry, liquorice and brown sugar. Lovely concentration and balance, full-bodied texture and good acidity. A long finish on smooth tannins, ripe fruit and spicy oak. This wine will age for years…
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